In recent years, the use of compressed refrigerant air conditioning devices has become commonplace in both commercial and residential applications. In many instances where air conditioning is available, it is also necessary or desirable to have a source of heat for a fluid, for example, water. Such an occasion is found, for example, in residential, apartment, motel or hotel applications where a central air conditioning unit is provided and where there is a swimming pool which is to be heated for a portion of the year. In many instances, there is a coincidence of time periods when it is desirable to provide cooling to the facility served by the air conditioning device and to provide heat to the fluid. For example, in the morning it may be necessary to begin cooling the house or motel rooms and simultaneously heating the water in the swimming pool which has cooled during the night.
However, there are also other situations where air conditioning and selective fluid heating are desirable in industrial applications, for example, where heated water is needed for cleaning or processing purposes.
Heretofore, separate facilities have generally been provided to supply cooling and heating services.
However, with the advent of rapidly escalating energy costs and simultaneous emphasis on energy conservation, the cost of separate facilities necessitates alternate approaches.